Many established companies have a large remote workforce these days, with a large percentage of remote jobs. Companies are learning that they benefit from having motivated employees working in remote settings at less cost to them. We have assembled a list of the top companies.
The pandemic caused big changes to the way employers think about work, which has led to increased remote job opportunities.
While many companies are more flexible about allowing people to work from home part-time in an attempt to be flexible, there are many corporations. both big and small, that are shifting to fully remote for job opportunities.
Why has this change occurred? Is it good for both employers and employees? Which companies are making this change? What are the top remote companies?
We have answers to all of your questions.
Table of Contents
Why Are Companies Turning To Remote Work?
For many companies, what was a simple necessity during the pandemic lockdowns changed once places of business started to reopen. Workers found that working from a home office provided many perks, including work-life balance, flexibility in meeting the needs of their families, and increased productivity.
Companies found that their concerns about productivity did not materialize. They noticed other benefits as well, so many companies responded by allowing for a more flexible work environment. The result? Some fully remote companies have popped up on the scene.
1. Competitive Benefit for Finding Employees
Since many people are hoping to become remote workers, creating positions that require no in-person work requirement keeps businesses competitive.
After the epidemic, nearly 2/3 of workers said that being able to work remotely at least part of the time was so important that they would look for another job that offered it, while 39% would just quit, according to a study by Owl Labs.
2. Cost Savings
Allowing people to work from home reduces the overhead of the company. Businesses no longer have to pay costly rent for as much office space.
In addition to rent, offices need electricity, heat, cleaning, etc. These cost savings can be used in other ways, such as offering more competitive compensation or benefits packages.
3. Improved Health of Employees
This can include both physical and mental health. Taking away the stress of commuting – and the germs picked up in the process – is often cited as a perk of remote working. A stomach bug or terrible cold can run through a place of employment.
Putting sick people into a mutual coworking space increases the chance of passing along sickness. Working from home decreases those risks resulting in a healthier, happier team.
4. Increased Loyalty
Happy employees are more loyal employees. Offering team members flexibility is a great way to keep employees, which results in stability for your business.
5. Reduced Absenteeism
Parental leave is a very real problem for some companies, which the creation of remote positions help to alleviate. An employee who calls in sick for an ill child or even themself might keep working if they didn’t have to leave the house.
What might have been a day of lost productivity does not disturb the flow, which results in an increase in productivity.
6. Talent Pool Increases
If you are a company based out of a corporate office, your talent pool is limited to those who either reside in the area or are willing to relocate. When hiring a remote team your pool of potential workers increases exponentially.
What Type Of Work Is Often Done Remotely?
Interestingly enough, there has been a lot of change in what types of work are done remotely. In the past, there were stereotypical work-from-home jobs that included customer service, copywriting, transcribing, etc.
Now, companies recognize that if you have a computer and workstation, you can do almost any type of job from home. Improvements in technology have afforded people the ability to hold meetings virtually, communicate via messaging, share large files digitally, and do all of the things businesses do in person.
What this has done is changed the way we think about remote work. In other words, most office jobs can now be done from the comfort of your own home.
Often, potential employees don’t even need to provide their own laptop and workstation, as some employers offer startup money or reimbursement for the person to set up a home office workspace.
There are limitations to what can be done remotely. Some industries, such as finance, insurance, and management, can conduct nearly 70% of their business online, while at the other end of the spectrum, food service and agriculture must do over 90% in person.
A study by McKinsey & Company distinguished between the percentage of remote work that can be done in an industry with no loss of productivity vs the theoretical amount that could be done depending on the task.
Their conclusion was that only 29% of the jobs in their study could be done remotely, although an additional 10% might be able to be done at home.
| Skill | % Remote With No Productivity Loss | Theoretical Maximum % Remote |
| Finance and insurance | 76 | 86 |
| Management | 68 | 78 |
| Professional, scientific, and technical services | 62 | 75 |
| IT and telecommunications | 58 | 69 |
| Education | 33 | 69 |
| Wholesale trade | 41 | 52 |
| Real Estate | 32 | 44 |
| Government And Administrative Support | 31 | 42 |
| Utilities | 31 | 37 |
| Art, Entertainment, And Recreation | 19 | 32 |
| Healthcare And Social Assistance | 19 | 32 |
| Retail Trade | 18 | 28 |
| Mining | 19 | 25 |
| Manufacturing | 19 | 23 |
| Transportation And Warehousing | 18 | 22 |
| Construction | 15 | 20 |
| Accommodation And Food Services | 8 | 9 |
| Agriculture | 7 | 8 |
| Total | 29 | 39 |
McKinsey made the interesting point that certain skills are useful in many jobs, but certain tasks can be done remotely in one job while they are better done hands-on in other situations.
The more a job or even a single task requires personal contact, uses equipment, or involves a process, the less likely it is a good fit for remote work.
To reach their conclusion, they studied 2,000 activities in over 800 jobs.
| Skill | % Remote With No Productivity Loss | Theoretical Maxumum Remote | Task That Can Be Done Remotely | Task That Must Be Done in Person |
| Updating knowledge and learning | 82 | 91 | Attend online seminar | Attend surgical skills course |
| Interacting with computers | 70 | 75 | Create electronic data backup Set up computer hardware | Set up computer hardware |
| Thinking creatively | 43 | 68 | Design layouts for print publications | Create physical prototypes |
| Communicating with & guiding colleagues or client | 43 | 63 | Discuss business strategies | Direct firefighting or prevention |
| Processing, analyzing, and interpreting information | 54 | 61 | Analyze industry trends | Analyze crime scene evidence |
| Communication and establishing interpersonal relationships | 29 | 57 | Answer telephones to direct calls | Represent clients in legal proceedings |
| Performing administrative and organizational activities | 39 | 52 | Arrange facility schedules | Operate cash registers |
| Training, teaching, coaching, & developing others | 6 | 47 | Instruct college students | Train food service personnel |
| Monitoring processes, surroundings, or use of resources | 34 | 46 | Monitor market conditions or trends | Patrol properties to maintain safety |
| Selling to or influencing others | 24 | 41 | Monitor products, services, or events | Distribute samples |
| Measuring products or surroundings | 24 | 33 | Estimate building costs | Measure water level or depth |
| Assisting and caring for others | 8 | 12 | Make travel arrangements | Provide emergency assistance |
| Equipment, materials, and machinery | 2 | Test software performance | Inspect cargo hazards | |
| Handling and moving objects | 0 | No examples | Collect dirty dishes | |
| Controlling machines & mechanical equipment | 0 | No examples | Operate equipment |
What Types Of Job Offer Remote Work?
With many remote jobs available, some of the highest paid are in IT and software development, but many fields are lucrative.
- Architect: Working from home on building design and renovation is a great job for an architect, everything from designing personal homes to hotels or business offices.
- eCommerce: It makes sense that since eCommerce is conducting business electronically they would be open to all employees working remotely.
- Customer Support: Many businesses need customer support specialists, whether talking about talking through Amazon returns or Apple troubleshooting. Chat customer support can be done from almost anywhere without even disrupting the people around you!
- Healthcare: Health insurance support, corporate quoting, hospital business office, etc.
- Product Manager: Overseeing product design, product marketing, sales, etc.
- Project Manager: Many different companies seek employees to manage projects in a variety of fields ranging from engineering to marketing.
- Software Engineer: Software engineers work on software development. There is also a need for people to work in marketing and sales for these same companies.
- Web Design: Since so much is done online, web design has become a necessity for most businesses and companies. Those with computer skills and artistic design can capitalize on this need and still work from the comfort of their own home.
What Is The Largest All-Remote Company?
There are many large companies that are entirely remote but Gitlab is usually noted as the largest all-remote company. Having more than 2,000 team members from all over the world (approximately 65 countries), Gitlab does not have a corporate office.
Here are the top remote employers.
- Appen: A provider of internet-based research, Appen usually has job openings for those who are looking for a flexible schedule.
- Github: A software development company, Github is a great opportunity for remote job seekers in many areas, including administration, development, marketing, and others.
- Gitlab: Gitlab allows companies a organize, track and plan project work.
- Hubspot: Their motto is that “work is not a place, it is a thing you do to earn income.” They offer software to meet the needs of businesses as they work to improve customer satisfaction.
- Hubstaff: Hubstaff gives companies a method to track and manage virtual employees.
- UnitedHealth Group: Offering remote options for employment in many areas, this digital healthcare community is a huge remote employer. They hire in clinical positions, marketing, project management, and customer service.
Top Remote Companies From Work-From-Employees
Perusing through job listings can net you a lot of exciting and lucrative remote employment opportunities. People who once assumed they needed to go into an office full-time can now find themselves with flexibility and higher job satisfaction.
Many employers have positions ranging from customer success facilitation to project managers. Truly, the sky is the limit for the workforce.
- Airbnb: Airbnb no longer has a permanent home base working in an office as they have shifted entirely remote. When they have the need to get together, they simply use Airbnb properties to host meetings.
- Amazon: Most of us recognize Amazon for their online shopping, streaming music, and movie business, but did you know they have remote positions? Although this giant of an employer only has a small percentage of their employees working from home, the number slowly continues to grow.
- CVS: This healthcare giant has been named one of the top companies offering remote work opportunities in areas such as customer support.
- Facebook: The social media platform corporation has announced that employees are free to work remotely or go into the brick-and-mortar office.
- Linkedin: Their over 16,000 employees have the option of working from an office or from home.
- Microsoft: While Microsoft allows flexible options for many of their employees, those who wish to work from home more than 50% of the time have to get approval from their direct supervisor.
- Slack: Slack is an app that offers businesses a way to share confidential information online in a way that is safe and protected. It is not surprising that many of their jobs are remote.
- Toptal: This is another company whose very existence surrounds helping businesses to manage a remote team. They manage their own without a headquarters.
- WordPress: A content management system software, WordPress hires many people to work remotely. Roughly 80% of their employees work remotely.
- Zapier: An online platform that helps automate workflow by connecting apps, they are another company that revolutionized remote work and set the bare high for other companies.
